Double Lives.

 We didn't have time to go to Sam Mother's Diner, so we met at the courthouse cafe....Josie was already there..

"Heyyy, I got all of you guys coffee..." she said.

Several hot steaming coffee cups were at our table...

"Oh Josie ,you are a godsend..."said Olivia..

"YESSSSSSSS!" said Beverly...

"Thanks Jo." said Nelson...

He and Beverly had really had a workout the night before..Making sweet love for hours!

''Donnie Ray, you didn't lie brother..WOWWWWWWW!"said Nelson.

I smiled..

"I told you!  when those two are upset...they leave it all in the bed..."I whispered to him as the four of us sipped our coffee...It was 9:20..We had little more than a half hour before the preliminary hearings began..

"Byron hasn't shown up yet?" asked Olivia..

"No...but I did talk to him...He's still in Los Angelas on Business...He'll be back in two days...You may have to ask for a continuance...I've apprised him of the situation and he is willing to testify on Billy's behalf." I said.

"Great...His only alibi...."said Beverly..

"No, we do have his credit card slip saying that he was at a gas station at 10:15 pm getting gas, her time of death was 10:25 pm...That Gas Station was six blocks away..Pretty doubtful he could have been there." said Nelson..

"This is just an arraignment..We'll have time for that later."said Josie.

"You're right Jo.."said Olivia..

"Look....It's Zoey!"said Beverly...

"Liv, Beverly...I am soo sorry I missed you guys yesterday... Lem told me you stopped by. I'm late for a hearing myself..I was up here getting a coffee and I saw you. Hi Josie,Nelson, Donnie Ray!"said Zoey...

"So nice to see you girl.."said Olivia, who hugged her friend..

"I know what you want...considering who you are defending...Yes...Aida Gleeson had come to me the day she died and had an exploratory conversation with me about getting a divorce...She told me everything...About her husband having a Gay lover and about him living a double life for years and how she was tired of the facade.. I filed the papers for her..."said Zoey..

"Did he know about this?" I asked.

"He did not!...She was  going to talk to him about it that night...They had a book signing that night." said Zoey.

"I was at it..."said Beverly..

Nelson looked at his watch..

"Guys, it's time for the arraignment." said Nelson..

"Liv, Bev, There is something else you should know...I'll talk to you after arraignment...I have to go too!"said Zoey.

"Okay girl...We'll talk.Stop by our place!" said Olivia, kissing Zoey on the cheek...

"Okay guys, let's go." she said.

II-

We met in the courtroom for the arraignment...

Judge Percy Reynolds was presiding...He had a special place in his heart for us..We had defended him twice on murder charges and gotten acquittals for us..

ADA Diane Baronski gave a very spirited and convincing argument that Billy Gleeson was a cold blooded murderer and should not be released and that he was a threat to the public..

Our client, Billy Gleeson looked bewildered...

Olivia gave an equally spirited and convincing argument to the contrary, stating that our client had no prior criminal record, not even a parking or traffic ticket...and was highly respected in the community..

Beverly and Josie paraded 27 people from the literary and psychology community who knew him and vouched for him...

Nelson showed a credit card receipt bringing up the fact that maybe the wrong man was being accused..

Judge Reynolds took delight in setting bail at $1500.00 and smiling at Lt. Tragg,

Lt. Tragg was as red as a beet...

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?" asked ADA Baronski who looked on as..She was impressed with our preparation...Most lawyers aren't as prepared for an arraignment as we were, she mused..  This ws going to be fun , going up against us, she wagered.

Beverly wrote a check for $150.00

and Josie passed it to the bailiff, who passed her his number...She smiled at him...He winked at her..

"Olivia, Beverly, Nelson, Donnie Ray and Josie...Thank you..Thank you so much.."said Billy Gleeson..

He had been locked up for three days...It felt good to be free..

"Go home...get a shower, change your clothes and pack a bag....After you meet with us...I want you to go get a hotel room...in your own name and keep a low profile."said Olivia.

"Let's get him something to eat first.." I said.

"Let's go to Camden..."said Nelson..

"Yes..We can't eat at Sam Mother's , not today..."said Josie.

"Yes, we'll eat in Camden, then bring you back across the bridge to your place where you can get a hot shower and a change of clothes...You'll join us later at our place." said Olivia.

"Sounds like a plan Liv." said Billy.

Beverly was still upset and angry at Billy's revelation that he was Gay and that he and Aida had been living a lie.

"I uh arrested that particular Judge on two seperate occassions and charged him with First degree murder...In both instances, Olivia and Beverly defended him and got him acquitted..He and another lawyer, Dabnis Coley ,  a real prick

an associate of theirs sued the City of Philadelphia.. The city settled..He hates my guts..."said Lt. Tragg..

"As he should, but he's not going to gum up the works...He's too close to the defense ...He can't be objective...I'm going to move that he recuse himself.." said ADA Baronski.

ADA James "Jumpshot Jim" Taylor walked up to them...he leaned over to try and kiss ADA Baronski, who moved away from him..He grabbed her again and ran his hands under her skirt...

"What are you trying to do?  "said Diane Baronski sternly...removing his hands and pulling away from him....

"I haven't seen you in a week , you haven't returned my calls or texts... and I'm very, very horny" he whispered in her ear..

"I've been busy...Like I am now...I'm preparing for a trial.." she said..She did not like being acosted in public like that...

He pulled her to him....

"This was an arraignment hearing...Your preliminary for this case is in three days...Don't try to bullshit me..Now let's you and me go have a thick steak and a baked potato and then up to my room where I can put something thick inside you..." he said.

He kissed her...

"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm, give me some sugar baby!....Mmmmmmmmmmm" he moaned as he kissed her nd slowly ran his hands up her skirt...

SHE SLAPPED HIM HARD...!!

"Take your hands off of me...Don't you ever acost me in public like that again." she said and walked off..

People were looking...Several people heard the loud slap and saw her administer it....

Lt. Tragg, who didn't like ADA James "Jumpshot Jim" Taylor laughed and walked away....

ADA Taylor was furious...He stomped his foot and stormed away.....Cursing and mumbling....

Olivia, Beverly and Josie cracked up laughing...

"Yvette told me that she was sleeping with both Lt. Tragg and Bert Vandenberg..I didn't know about Jumpshot Jim."said Olivia.

"Apparently she's been sleeping with Jumpshot Jim too."laughed Beverly..

"She's new in town and sleeping with three guys...That's not a good look.."said Josie.

"She's going to get a reputation and not a good one.."said Nelson..

I didn't comment...I didn't care who she was sleeping with...She was still a very smart and capable woman and should be watched..

"Let's get out of here." I said.

III-

Some Hours later we were all home in the conference room going over the particulars of the case..

Nelson and Beverly were going over the particulars of each other..In a corner kissing passionately...

"That boy sure loves my daughter.." observed Alfreda..

"She sure loves him too!" laughed Olivia... "Oh My God you two, come up for air." Olivia laughed.

The bell rang...

"I'll get it." I said..

It was Zoey....

"Hey Guys...As promised...I came to tell you everything.." she said..

Beverly, who couldn't be disappointed any further finally released herself from Nelson's embrace..and sat front and center..

"I thought you two might need to be alone." laughed Olivia..

"Hello again Zo."said Nelson, blushing !

"Hi Zo." said Josie.

Zoey breathed heavily..

"She's dead now, so I guess that throws away Attorney /Client priveledge ..Aida came to me on the last day of her life and  we formalized divorce proceedings...I got the impression that this was something that had been building up in her for awhile..She told me they had just finished one last book...It hadn't gone to the press yet , but that it was the last book in their enduring contract.. She said she needed to run the divorce by Billy first, but that she was tired of living a lie..She wanted to be free to be who she was."said Zoey.

"I know, married to him all that time and him being Gay...Having a male lover that he went to every night ,while she lie in bed, alone.."said Beverly...

"Oh she wasn't uh exactly lying in bed alone.."said Zoey..

"She had a guy on the side didn't she?  She would have to."said Josie..

"Ohhhh my godd...but ,who could blame her?"said Beverly...

"No...She didn't have a guy on the side.."said Zo..

"SHE DIDN'T?" asked Olivia.

"NO SHE DIDN'T! SHE HAD A WOMAN ON THE SIDE!!! AIDA WAS A LESBIAN !"said Zoey..

"WHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTT?" I said.

"You're kidding!"said Olivia.

"SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!"said Beverly...

"OH MY GOD!!" said Josie.

"We've had some cases....but this one...THIS ONE RIGHT HERE....WHOAAAAAA!" said Nelson..

"Someone is at the door...I'll open it."said Alfreda.

Billy Gleeson walked in...

Alfreda looked him up and down.. "What a waste , He's one Handsome Man!" she thought to herself..

He looked at all of us..

"Am I missing something?" he asked.

IV-

"Did you know your wife had a female lover Billy?" asked Olivia softly..

He sat down, he composed himself and then he took a deep breath..

"Yes!" he said.. "We had no secrets from each other..."

He looked straight at Beverly.

Who looked stunned..

"People like you Beverly is why we didn't come out of the closet sooner...Your hurt, your disbelief...Your dissapointment..It would have killed you all, our loyal fans...Let me tell you all a story...I played Football and Basketball, I was all city in both, lettered in both...Girls always liked me.. I mean they were throwing their panties and bras at me...but for some reason, they left me cold..I just wasn't interested...by the time I was 15..I knew...I knew that I was Gay...That I liked boys...Men....My mother thought that I was shy, but my dad knew, He suspected all along and he shunned me..

Aida....Aida was gorgeous, had a stunning body...Was a cheerleader...We had known each other for years..A lot of guys had thrown themselves at her...but she didn't give too many the time of day...

Her mother and my mother were friends and they fixed us up on a date...A blind date... Well we went to a movie and out to dinner and uh I drove her home and we sat there in the car and she told me..

"Look, before you get started trying to kiss me and trying to take my bra off.. you're a nice guy and all and I'm telling you this ,because I can trust you...but I like girls...I'm sorry, but I do..I'm not into guys sexually...I'm sorry." she said..

I felt soooo relieved...I told her my secret...That I liked boys and we just clicked...We became sooo close...We talked on the phone at night for hours...We went out on fake dates again and no one was the wiser...Everybody thought she was my girl and I was her man...We graduated, went to the same college,had the same major, went to the same grad school.. and carried on this little secret courtship..I had boyfriends and she had girlfriends...but to the world..we were a couple.. My father and I grew closer...He died thinking I was straight... ''Guess you just had to meet the right girl." he said, he had no idea.

"Why did you two get married?" I asked.

"I didn't trust anybody else..and she didn't either..and I uh guess it just seemed right.." he said.

"Did you two uh ever?" asked Nelson.

"Have sex? Yes...of course we did..We were married after all...but it was weird...Never as good as it was when I was with Byron.....Byron and I met five years ago and we just clicked..I took him home to meet Aida..I walked in on her and Sasha..That's her lover....We got it all out in the open...She was uh having an affair with Sasha and I had Byron...It worked for us...for awhile..We started writing the books, the Podcast, The Radio show and the marriage counseling and it all worked out.."said Billy.

"To the tune of millions."said Olivia.

"Yes...We've both made more money than we can ever spend...but we both tired of living a lie..Byron wants to get married and Sasha wanted Aida to move in with her..The Pressure of our relationships was getting to both of us...But we wanted to write one more book and then we talked of calling it quits..ending the Podcast, the radio show and the practice and quietly going our seperate ways..but I guess that's all over with now...After this murder trial...my little secret will be out..In a way I'm relieved...I can finally be who I really am."said Billy.

''Aren't you the least bit concerned about who killed her? Do you have any idea who?" I asked.

"Some Crazed fan I guess..I didn't have time to really think about it...I didn't have time to grieve...She was my best friend...Regardless of what you think...I really did love her..I really did and she really did love me..What we wrote about marriage and relationships...That was real." he said as tears flowed from his eyes..

There wasn't a dry eye in the room... Olivia put her arms around Beverly, both of them were crying profusely...

Josie, Zoey and Alfreda were also crying profusely....

Nelson turned and whispered in my ear...

"I'm about to have another good night ,aint I?" he asked..

I leaned back in my chair..

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh yeah, I am too!" I said and smiled broadly!

(TO BE CONTINUED)